Vol 4 Chapter 120: Secluded Cultivation

"Haha! If the Holy Son fails to nurture a Rare Beast within a hundred years according to this method, I'll personally deliver the Starry Void Turtle to the Beast Master Sect!"

The Starry Void Turtle inside the Heavenly Secrets Tower: ?

"Deal."

Considering the valuable intelligence about Rare Beasts and the fact he hadn't actually suffered harm from the Yin Household Sect, Lin Jing temporarily set aside his grievances against Old Man Heavenly Secrets' schemes.

From another perspective, if Old Man Heavenly Secrets hadn't discovered and guided him to the Beast Master Sect, he might have already been devoured by wild Demonic Beasts.

"We'll meet again in a hundred years."

As Lin Jing departed, the Starry Void Turtle materialized beside Old Man Heavenly Secrets, watching the retreating figure. "Is this appropriate?" it asked.

Old Man Heavenly Secrets turned his head. "Rest assured. I've repeatedly divined this using the Heavenly Secrets method—there won't be any mistakes. You won't actually have to go to the Beast Master Sect."

The turtle pressed, "I mean—if this method is correct, is it appropriate to share such crucial intelligence with an outsider!"

"Rare Beasts possess even greater potential than Divine Physiques."

"Could it be you also believe the Ancient Kingdom is doomed? Planning to find a new home for the Heavenly Secrets Tower in advance? Preparing to relocate to Qingzhou?"

"Nonsense!" Old Man Heavenly Secrets rapped the turtle's shell. "This was decided through discussions with the First Ancient Emperor. I exchanged views with His Majesty at the Demon Extermination Division..."

"This method of evolving Rare Beasts isn't suitable for widespread experimentation within the Ancient Kingdom. Those who can manifest Divine Physiques here mostly belong to noble families and sects with their own traditions—they wouldn't casually attempt beast-taming techniques. The kingdom's policies also prioritize human destiny energy—this can't be changed overnight or decided hastily. Concentrating resources to nurture Rare Beasts would be extremely difficult."

"But Qingzhou and the Beast Master Sect there are different. The sect is backed by the Demon Court and dominates Qingzhou completely. Recruiting Divine Physique holders comes easily to them, and they possess an ideal environment for beast cultivation. In that royal territory, Rare Beasts can be better nurtured."

"As for concerns about whether a certain number of Rare Beasts might threaten the Ancient Kingdom... The First Ancient Emperor stated that our current priority is ensuring the Tianyuan Continent survives the impending Heavenly Demon invasion. During this critical period facing external threats, whether Demonic Beasts or demonic tribes—all are potential allies."

"The stronger our forces resisting the Heavenly Demon invasion, the lesser the losses our Ancient Kingdom will suffer! If other factions lose territory, they can simply relocate—it won't have significant impact. But if our kingdom loses territory and our national destiny dissipates... that would be truly irrecoverable."

..........

En route to the Spirit Dao Sect, Lin Jing transmitted the acquired intelligence back to the Beast Master Sect for Elder Mo to conduct experiments.

Acquiring innate Divine Physique holders wasn't easy—it required time to develop.

After sending this information, Lin Jing temporarily set it aside, awaiting experimental results while returning to the Spirit Dao Sect to continue cultivating using the Enlightenment Pool.

Besides Lin Jing, the ancient clan's Longevity Body—who had fallen asleep exhausted during the journey—was also brought along.

Upon landing, Yu Xun'er was awakened by Lin Jing. Though initially bewildered by the unfamiliar surroundings, she quickly received her assignments.

"Build a wooden house on that nearby mountain to live in. I'll assign you tasks—complete them all, and I'll impart cultivation techniques to start your training."

"Yes, Senior..." Yu Xun'er nodded, intensely curious about these tasks.

Lin Jing then summoned a small mushroom—the long-neglected Spell Elemental Mushroom.

"For the next few years, this will be your teacher."

The Spell Elemental Mushroom could independently create "illusions" without relying on the Ancient Emperor—perfect for tempering one's dao heart through these simulated environments.

Watching the large mushroom materialize, Yu Xun'er gulped—it looked... delicious.

"Mushroom, first construct an illusionary realm titled 'The Holy Son's Legend,' letting her observe my legendary life from a third-person perspective to broaden her horizons. Show me the finished product for approval," Lin Jing transmitted mentally.

After the First Ancient Emperor's return, the Ancient Kingdom experienced earthshaking changes. Incomplete statistics showed over a thousand officials executed within a month—including descendants of founding hero families.

While equally severe in punishing corrupt officials, the Second Ancient Emperor strongly opposed some of his predecessor's other demands—especially reducing cultivation resources for ancient clan members. Most national treasury resources must benefit the ancient clans... not nurture foreign talents.

As the Second Emperor declared: "This kingdom belongs to the ancient clans. Without their sacrifices millennia ago, there would be no Tianyuan Ancient Kingdom today. Only through the ancient clans' strength can the kingdom prosper."

"This isn't the ancient era where immortals oppressed mortals. At our founding, those saved mortals and low-level cultivators might have genuinely wished for the kingdom's prosperity, willing to contribute. But after millennia of peace, priorities have shifted—personal development now outweighs national interests. Outsiders don't deserve substantial investment—minor favors suffice."

On this matter, even facing his own father, the Second Emperor refused to yield. Their prolonged dispute plunged Tianyuan Ancient City and ancient clan members into deep anxiety, fearing collateral damage from the conflict.

These policy debates didn't affect Lin Jing's secluded cultivation at the Spirit Dao Sect.

At least the promised top-tier dragon vein cultivation site, Heavenly Flame Gu, and numerous Nascent Soul Transformation-level demonic prisoners were delivered as agreed—Lin Jing felt perfectly content, unconcerned with external chaos.

"Dragon vein."

"Demon Locking Tower."

"Heavenly Flame Gu."

"Excellent." Beside the Enlightenment Pool, Lin Jing examined the three floating objects with satisfaction.

The dragon vein was stored in a dragon-shaped spatial ring. Nearby floated a black miniature tower—a supreme-grade magical artifact imprisoning numerous demons above Nascent Soul Transformation level.

This supreme dragon vein would facilitate his avatar's breakthrough and years of cultivation. The demons in the Demon Locking Tower could serve purposes beyond alchemical refinement.

By having the Ice Gu employ Yin Spirit Gu's power to inflict inner demons on them, his avatar could then devour these demonic influences to cultivate the Heavenly Demon Finger technique!

If successful, the Heavenly Demon Finger might reach comparable mastery to the Heavenly Demon Divine Sense technique.

After fully exploiting these demons' value, refining them into pills would still be possible.

With the Heavenly Flame Gu's essence, all Ten Great Rare Gu were now assembled—the Ice Gu's existence could be considered complete...

"Now begins the secluded cultivation—converting all these resources into... my own strength."